Notebook Hard drive
 

So, my laptop hard drive took a crap a while back. Figuring I didn't need any part of it, I threw it away. So about a week ago, I go to Fry's and they say that there should have been a small adapter that was attached to the hardrive housing. Before that I went to Staples, and the guy told me I had an IDE port. He sold me a PATA and said it would work perfectly, and fit. It did not fit.

Also, both places told me they don't make IDE hard drives for laptops anymore.

Also, it's for a Compaq R4000. I got it from a pawn shop, and it ran great for a good 2 years, but I thought they only came out in '05.

Anyways, my question is, is it true about this little adapter thingy, and if so, could I order another one from Compaq/HP? I didn't see anything on their site about it.